i before e except after c... but what's the next bit?

[edam]

I'm sure someone once posted that there was something more to this rhyme to cope with all the exceptions but I can't remember what it is - anyone know? (ds is doing i before e at school).

[AMumInScotland]

... as long as the sound is "ee"

[AMumInScotland]

We had a VCR at school labelled as belonging to the "Sceince" department because someone only paid attention to the first part...

[edam]

Thanks - and :-) to amumin!

[maillotjaune]

We had "and words that end in ght" on the end of the rhyme.

[titchy]

And is the word 'neither' doesn't really flow though....

[flossyfloo]

I before E
except after C
Or when sounded as A
as in neighbour or weigh

[edam]

so it should read:

I before E
Except after C
Or when sounded as 'ay'
In words such as neighbour or weigh
Or in other exceptions such as weird or neither...

Not sure I can make that scan or rhyme!

[flossyfloo]

Never heard the last 'weird/neither' line so can't comment on that but the rest rhymes...
E and C rhyme from the first 2 lines
Ay and weigh rhyme from the last two lines.
It's not the best poem admittedly!

[edam]

Flossy, that was me making up the last bit to try to include some of the exceptions listed by MNers. That's why I said I had failed to make it rhyme or scan - feel free to improve it.

[flossyfloo]

Oops, sorry

As you were.

[monsterchild]

... and weird weighty neighbors

[purplepenguin86]

If the rule is 'as long as the sound is ee' surely that explains all of those exceptions, as none of them have the 'ee' sound.

I just learnt 'I before E except after C. There are exceptions to every rule!'

[WineOhWhy]

I before E excet after C. Weird!

[titchy]

Penguin - 'as long as the sound is ee or the word is friend'!

[Barbeasty]

Leigh. That's an eee sound and isn't i before e.

[BoneyBackJefferson]

You do know that it doesn't work?

there are more words that disprove the rhyme than it works for.

[SrirachaGirl]

I think that rhyme needs to be retired .

[BoneyBackJefferson]

[edam]

madeira and caffeine are foreign words though (and foreign doesn't make an eee sound before anyone points that one out...). You can't trust those pesky Portugese to make their language obey the rules of English spelling, oddly enough. Think caffeine is German but possibly reached us via the French.

(I remember learning Spanish at school and realising Tia Maria is Aunt Mary, which makes it sound far less enticing to a 16yo...)

[Elibean]

at Aunt Mary

I learned to pronounce 'caffeine' as 'caff-ay-een' but then I'm half French....

[edam]

caff-eye-un, huh? Very European and sophisticated!

[edam]

caff-eye-een, even!